Chinese Hand Laundry Alliance

The Chinese Hand Laundry Alliance (CHLA) is a labor organization formed in 1933 to protect the civil rights of overseas Chinese living in North America and "to help Chinese laundry workers break their isolation in American society." An openly left-wing organization, the CHLA used various means — including the slogans "To Save China, To Save Ourselves" and "Resist Japan and Save China” — to oppose the Japanese invasion of Manchuria.

In the United States and Canada in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the occupation of laundry worker was heavily identified with Chinese Americans to the extent that it became "the stereotypical occupation of a whole ethnic group."Racial discrimination, lack of English language skills, and a deficit of economic capital kept most Chinese Americans out of more desirable careers. Around the turn of the 20th century, one in four ethnic Chinese men in the United States worked in a laundry. Conditions were hard and a typical launderer worked for ten to sixteen hours a day.

According to one description:

Laundry work was especially wearisome, because it meant the soaking, scrubbing, and ironing of clothing solely by hand; moreover, prompt and high quality service was necessary to keep customers satisfied. Workers in laundries and groceries received the going wage of twenty-five dollars per month, and despite long hours the work-week was seven days. For the majority of the Chinese, then, the daily routine was almost solely working, eating, and sleeping. There were few other occupations available to Chinese.

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